Mordehall
As Toalla is to trade and Roadon is to war so is Mordehall to art and study. The world’s greatest poets, painters, and scholars are all children of Mordehall. Every city and most towns have a college devoted to the many studies of lore. Many great strides in magic and the written word have left the country. The people take great pride in this. Even many farmers know how to read. The kingdom was founded on the principles of education and art and true to that they have stayed. However all is not equal in Mordehall where aristocracy is alive and well. The kingdom is ruled over by a kaiser of the family line Von Dorwitz. The kaiser is supported by a class of lords and ladies who hold control over local lands. There have been many conflicts in the past and present between the nobility and the Von Dorwitz line. The nobility seek for more power and the Kaiser seeks to hold them. Rarely has it led to bloodshed. Conflicts are resolved in the trading of land, art, and wealth. Mordehall is the home of the oldest government in Var’Tareen. It is yet to fall even with the tensions between the two groups of leaders. Major Locations Mordehall is split into four Counties, each controlled by a count. The most Northern of these counties is Tasserich. The other counties are Quarinov, Es'Resson, and Pellisberg. Dorlon Dorlon the capital city, is constructed of two parts. Sitting on a great cliffside the city is split in the middle. On top of the cliff is the royal ward and home to the aristocracy. Grand marble buildings that are part of the government line the wide roads. Manors and walled complexes are home to lords and ladies. Elegant shops for jewelry, old books, and collectible art are found in plenty. In the center of it all is the royal palace. It is a stone building with many facades and statues of gold. But even more elegant than the palace is Dorlon University. A complex of nine buildings each one unique and built by The Order of Earthen Smiths. Not only is it a beautiful sight but it is also the best learning institution in all Var’Tareen. The Lower Ward is accessible by two giant metal staircases on the face of the cliff. Here the streets are tighter and the buildings smaller. But it is still Mordehall. Art galleries and book stores fill the ward. They say if you need something made, Dorlon is the place to go. The city is in the county of Es'Resson. Cape Red Cape Red lies at the end of the Narin Peninsula in the county of Pellisberg. It is named for the red algal blooms that occur in the bay biannually. Cape Red is the home to most of Mordehall’s fleet as well as many private vessels belonging to lords and merchants. It is also home to a great magic school. Port Thresthelm Port Thresthelm, located as it is behind the island of Rallia’s Claw is a safe and calm port. The port is a bustling center of trade and it lies on the site of an ancient human encampment. One used during the War of Ascendance but that humans were eventually forced to leave. It’s school is known for being the best for writers and historians. It is in the county of Quarinov. Pruzer Pruzer is a city in the county of Tasserich. It is the artistic center of Mordehall. Most Mordish fashion trends originate from this city. Nearby Pruzer are mines rich with silver, gold, and gemstones. The city is also known for its university and its incredible cathedral to Ghuramor. But even with its splendor, unrest simmers in Pruzer. It is a center for the Mordish Birding Society. Miirshire was a town travel East of Pruzer. Culture Nobility Mordehall has a highly structured and complex nobility hierarchy. At its most basic are three types of minor lords. Lords can only be appointed from the ranks of civilians by the Kaiser. The only other way to become noble is to be born into a noble landholding family. These families can sponsor people including artists, scholars, and bureaucrats. Most young people looking to get into art, academia, or politics must find a sponsor or else they will not be taken seriously by others or have funding. If the noble sponsor is particularly pleased they may be presented to the Kaiser for possible lordship. Being a lord or lady grants certain privileges not afforded to the rest of the populous. Should the Kaiser accept the plea for nobility they will be granted a ring and a scroll. Artists get gold rings and the title Lord Artist, scholars get iron rings and the title Lord Professor or Lord Scholar, and others get silver rings and the title Minor Noble. Henrus Kline was a Lord Professor and Lord Keel was a Minor Noble. One of the ways the Kaiser controls the noble families is by carefully choosing whom to grant nobility. Iron Tempest Commandos Neither kaisers nor lords in Mordehall keep a large army. By law the lords can only have small militias no more than one hundred and fifty soldiers for even the most powerful among them. The monarchy of Mordehall keeps a small army by choice. Most citizens have no wish to serve in the army preferring pursuits of the mind over those of the body. Most of those that do, the Mordish regulars, are mediocre soldiers at best. No match for Roadon or Toalla. But Mordehall’s greatest asset is not it’s art or history. It is a group of one thousand soldiers called The Iron Tempest Commandos. Operating in groups of four these soldiers in white cloaks are the best in the world. They train from the age of seven to be masters with blades, magic, and deception. Operating in secret they are undercover in every country poised for assassinations, sabotage, or simple reconnaissance. Their loyalty lies solely in the kaiser and a few selected generals. Mordehall makes the promise that should any wrong be done on their country, The Iron Tempest Commandos will make sure to punish whoever is at fault. Mordish Birding Society Not all in Mordehall are happy with the rule of the Kaiser. Many have noted the inequality between the peasantry and nobility. Many lords too are unhappy. They resent the Kaiser’s absolute rule. The result is an alliance between these groups and a secret society working to establish a Republic. Lord Keel and Janie Kerias were both members of this group. They went to the Southern Isles to recover human enchantment rituals. Keel felt this was their only chance of beating the Tempest Commandos. Their home was in Pruzer but many in the other counties were also involved in the Society. Death Mordehall remembers it’s dead in a number of ways. This is primarily done by artists creating great paintings or statues of people they respect, or authors writing long biographies. Additionally the Kaiser promoting people to the rank of Minor Noble, is considered a way to remember people. It is occasionally done posthumously. Poorer families will commision a poem to be written about their dead relatives. Finally those who Mordehall feels deserves the most remembrance will have university wings named after them. Miscellaneous The Mordish people revere the god Yaerrin for his scholarly teachings. Many of his order are from this country. But the lords revere Selviir. Her deception, secrets, and vigilance form the basis of the noble society in Mordehall. Mordish sailors were known for their crude humor and penchant for sea shanties. Events In AeP 446 the Mordish Birding Society was active and trying to form a Mordish Republic. Under Lord Keel they launched an expedition from Cape Red, and returned with artifacts to Pruzer. People from Mordehall * Chrysanthemum * Doc McPriam * Feerik * Genna * Henrus Kline * Janie Kerias * Emilio Kent / Lord Keel * Melar Peterson * Palo * Sylvie Craftsmanship Mordehall is known for the exemplary skill of it’s smiths. The techniques perfected here for forging armor and weapons is passed down from Ghuramor himself. The blades, and armor are not only stronger than most normal weapons they are beautiful and elegant. Not every smith in this country has the ability to do this but still the smiths are known for the Mordish Make. List of Known Mordish Universities * Cape Red University: Know as one of the best magical schools in the world. However as the chief school of a major city all fields were taught here. * Dri'Farin School of Botany and Physical Sciences * East Pruzer Numbers College * Elmsville College of Arts and Aristocracy * Inlet Academy of Unamancy and other Magics * Lord Safron's College of Gentlemanly Arts List of Appearances Campaigns # Silver Mists and Bloody Tides Session 1: Blood Tide # Silver Mists and Bloody Tides Session 8: The Fury of the Isles # A Thief Among Traitors Session 1: Nest Supplemental # Cults of the North Supplemental Documents: Tlaloc's Backstory # Cults of the North Supplemental Documents: Ellenora's Backstory # SMBT Supplemental: Lord Keel’s Letter Category:Locations Category:Countries Category:Principality of Mordehall